Allentown sinkhole spreads into nearby cemetery, affecting 54 graves

The Allentown sinkhole that damaged eight homes along North Eighth Street also spread into the cemetery across the street and has affected 54 graves, officials said.

The ground has become unsettled around the affected tombstones at Union and West End Cemetery, and some of the stones have become separated from their bases, Allentown Fire Chief Robert Scheirer said.

Lehigh County Coroner Scott Grim has sought a court order to exhume the bodies, although officials do not yet know if that will be necessary, Scheirer said. A judge will visit the scene at 3 o'clock today.

Most of the affected tombstones are very old. Deborah Cox-Van Horn, director of the Old Allentown Preservation Association, said there have been no new burials in that part of the cemetery in about 100 years.

"Whatever would be close to the fence there, it probably would not be anything but dust and bones," she said.

Eight houses in the 300 block of North 10th Street have been damaged by this morning's sinkhole and water main break, and about 25 residents had to evacuate, Scheirer said.

Three of the damaged houses may need to be condemned, although that will not be known for sure until an assessment by structural engineers, said Assistant Fire Chief Lee Laubach.

The houses at 341 and 343 N. 10th St. have been so damaged that the structures are leaning against each other, Scheirer said. The house at 345 N. 10th St. also appears to have shifted.

The water main break completely washed out everything beneath the road, Scheirer. There have been no injuries among any of the residents, according to Laubach.

Scheirer said it was too early to determine whether the water main break caused the sinkhole, or vice versa.

"That's the chicken-egg question, which one came first," he said. "We don't know that yet."

A contractor began opening up the road about 2 o'clock to assess the break. That work will likely continue into the night, Laubach said.

Scheirer said officials are also attempting to get several pets out of some of the houses. They know of at least two cats still inside one of the homes.

A gas transmission line runs beneath 10th St. and goes all the way to Whitehall Township, Laubach said. While opening the road, the contractor is placing shoring atop that line and webbing around it to prevent any collapses.

Several residents of the block waited in the cold, behind yellow police tape, as police officers, firefighters and workers from the UGI gas company worked. It was hours before officials could retrieve clothes, money and other essential items from the houses for the residents.

Karen Mertz, of 329 N. 10th St., was told by a police officer she would have to find somewhere else to stay for the next several days.

Her family had just returned to the house two weeks ago after having been displaced by a fire.

"Between the fire and this, my insurance lady asked me, 'What, are you trying to get on Oprah?'" Mertz said. "I think this is the good Lord trying to tell us it's time to move out of Allentown."

A police officer told Mertz the damage would likely be covered by sinkhole insurance.

"I have it, but a lot of my neighbors do not," Mertz said.

But Cox-Van Horn said she believes many residents of the neighborhood have purchased sinkhole insurance due to past problems in the area.

In the 1990s, a sinkhole opened on Liberty Street between Eighth and Lumber streets and destroyed a church, Cox-Van Horn said.

"So it is something that is disconcerting to people," she said. "It just goes to show that our infrastructure here is pretty old.

Cox-Van Horn said the houses leaning against each other at 341 and 343 N. 10th St. were the first two homes the association restored and sold in 1978 as part of their Acquisition & Rehabilitation program.

This morning's sinkhole falls within the Old Allentown Historic District, which spans from Linden to Liberty streets and between Eighth and Lumber streets.

J.R. Rosado, of 337 N. 10th St., evacuated his house shortly after discovering his basement filled with water about 6 o'clock this morning. He thought it was a plumbing problem and was about to call a plumber.

"The water was gushing; it came all the way up to our second step in the basement," Rosado said. "And all these houses are connected so if one goes, they all go."